Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) Short Interest Update

Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,410,000 shares, an increase of 23.5% from the February 28th total of 6,000,000 shares. Currently, 3.5% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 4,690,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.6 days.

Bath & Body Works Stock Up 4.0 %

Shares of NYSE BBWI traded up $1.22 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $31.85. 4,262,829 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,512,370. The business has a 50 day moving average of $34.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of $34.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.77, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.89. Bath & Body Works has a 1 year low of $26.21 and a 1 year high of $52.99.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.78 billion. Bath & Body Works had a net margin of 12.43% and a negative return on equity of 44.03%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Bath & Body Works will post 3.3 EPS for the current year.

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.51%. Bath & Body Works’s payout ratio is currently 21.98%.

Bath & Body Works declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 27th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 6.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Argus restated a “hold” rating on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Bath & Body Works from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Bath & Body Works from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $42.00 to $48.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays decreased their target price on Bath & Body Works from $43.00 to $38.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Bath & Body Works from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $40.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.06.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of BBWI. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Bath & Body Works by 99.7% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 659 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 329 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bath & Body Works during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works by 58.8% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 905 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works by 81.9% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 957 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Bath & Body Works by 135.0% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,013 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 582 shares in the last quarter. 95.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bath & Body Works Company Profile

Bath & Body Works, Inc is a specialty retailers and home to America’s Favorite Fragrances, offering a breadth of exclusive fragrances for the body and home, including the selling collections for fine fragrance mist, body lotion and body cream, 3-wick candles, home fragrance diffusers and liquid hand soap.